This year, Gateway has welcomed a brand-new chemistry teacher, Mr. Helmbold! I was lucky enough to interview him this past week, and we were able to have a wonderful conversation about how he got into teaching, some of his favorite things, and more!
When asked about his path to becoming a teacher, he shared, “I always had fun in school. I knew I wanted to become a teacher in 10th grade, believe it or not. I always had a positive relationship with my teachers. and they just made it look like a very fun job when I was younger.”
Even though he currently teaches chemistry, that wasn’t his favorite subject while in school. That honor goes to Spanish, and if not for the low demand, he would’ve been a Spanish teacher!
When asked about his ideal school day, he described, “Come in with a fresh cup of coffee, everybody comes into morning meeting calmly and with their ID’s, and then the chemistry classes are nice and calm as well. Ideally teaching the periodic table as it’s always been a favorite of mine to teach.”
He also let me know that E=mc² was a favorite of his as well, and he would love to have dinner with Albert Einstein to discuss the simple yet complicated nature of the equation.
We wrapped it up by having a conversation about the band Korn, which he was happy to hear I liked, as a fellow Nu Metal fan myself! “I can’t believe you know about them!” he had to say.
Overall, we are all so excited and happy to have such a kind and friendly guy like Mr. Helmbold at our school. He’s really looking forward to being a long-term teacher here, and I’m glad I was able to take the time to have a nice conversation with him!
Thank you for reading, and give him a wave in the hallway next time you pass by 304!
